Network name: EPALE
Electronic Platform for Adult Learning in Europe
Network Description:
EPALE is a European platform for professionals in adult education in Europe. Established in 2014 by the Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport, and Culture of the European Commission, as a result of challenges in the field of adult education across Europe, such as sector diversity, differences between education systems for adults, low level of cooperation between countries, funding, etc.
In 2019, the Republic of North Macedonia joins the European family of the EPALE network. The National Support Service will operate within the National Agency for European Educational Programmes and Mobility, which is responsible for implementing activities at the national level.
EPALE offers access to several educational resources, strategic documents, blogs, news, events, and networking tools in several areas:
- Student support
- Learning environments
- Life skills
- Development of policies in adult education
- Good practices and improving the quality of work.
From 2020, EPALE for the FIRST TIME receives its support in the Macedonian language and Cyrillic alphabet. The interface has been translated, but more importantly, the Macedonian language appears for the first time in the list of languages in this European family, it is recognized and visible in Cyrillic. It is not only a simple translation, but also an opportunity for interaction in Macedonian, our language is recognized, visible and accessible in a European context and beyond, and strongly contributes to the general concept of multilingualism in the Platform.
Network goals:
The platform provides access to timely information related to events, exchange of resources, and good practices through participation in discussion groups, blogs, and articles. Institutions can present their work and join the database of institutions, which makes them visible and can be easily recognized by other institutions for involvement in joint projects.
Who is it for:
EPALE is a platform for professionals in adult education in Europe. It covers different target groups - teachers, professors, coaches, researchers, decision-makers, and everyone else who is involved, has, or wants to play a professional role in adult education.
Benefits:
Registered members can:
● To initiate and/or participate in discussions on various topics in the field of adult education throughout Europe,
● To exchange ideas, resources, and good practices,
● Create their own collaboration space, allowing them to explore ideas for current and/or future projects with potential project partners in a limited and closed group,
● Promote their organization/institution, the activities it implements, and the results it achieves to a wider range of stakeholders,
● Raise the level of internationalization of work, find partners for future projects and build a trans-national network,
● Attach blogs, events, and resources.
Facts and figures about the network:
At the moment, our country has over 560 registered profiles and over 220 published posts on various topics.
Link то the official website of the network:
https://epale.ec.europa.eu/mk
The EPALE National Support Service (EPALE NSP) is part of the National Agency for European Educational Programs and Mobility.
EPALE-MK NSP identifies important content at the national level and establishes and maintains contacts with the social partners in North Macedonia as well as other national support services.
In the first years of the implementation of EPALE, our goal is to attract as many adults as possible to the educational process, by making EPALE more visible to different target groups in adult education and vocational education and training. EPALE also provides an open field for decision-makers to work together to align and advance strategies and policies for adult learners locally and nationally.
Given the complexity and diversity of the adult education sector, our goal will be in particular: providers of adult education opportunities in general and vocational education and training, research centers, employers, and their associations that organize adult education, and policymakers of local and national level.
Our promotional activities include regional and national events, seminars, networking, content creation support, encouraging the exchange of good practices, as well as capacity building of EPALE ambassadors and members of the EPALE NSP team.
The EPALE expanded team also includes EPALE ambassadors and content creators. Ambassadors disseminate information about the network, identify social partners and register new users of the Platform, and organize small events locally. Content creators publish structured texts on specific topics, which are easy to read and aim to inform and draw readers' attention to the Platform.
Additional information:
Follow us on social media:
Facebook: EPALE North Macedonia
https://www.facebook.com/nssepalemk